Call for Papers
4th International Environmental Humanities Conference: The Blue Humanities
Cappadocia University (Mustafapaşa Campus, 50420 Ürgüp/Nevşehir,Turkey)
May 20-23, 2026
Confirmed Keynote Speakers
Steve Mentz (St. John's University, USA)
Simon C. Estok (Sungkyunkwan University, S. Korea)
2 more keynote speakers to be announced
The Blue Humanities is a “current of thought” that challenges terracentric modes of knowing and envisions new ways of living with planetary waters in an era of ecological uncertainty. Fluid and dynamic, it spans socio-cultural, historical, philosophical, ethical, aesthetic, literary, and scientific perspectives, incorporating insights from Indigenous epistemologies, postcolonial theory, and hydrofeminist thought.
Central to the Blue Humanities is a relational mode of thinking, known as thinking with water, attuned to the mutable, and multispecies character of aquatic environments. Water, in its many forms—oceans, lakes, rivers, creeks, bays, ponds, wetlands, deltas, canals, glaciers, clouds, rain, snow, fog, mist, vapor, and ice—provokes this mode of thinking as it offers vital insights into the dynamic interrelations between aquatic systems, climate processes, and cultural imaginaries.
The 4th International Environmental Humanities Conference invites scholars, artists, writers, and practitioners to contribute to ongoing conversations that chart the multiple currents of water-centered thinking. We welcome proposals that examine the oceanic and the aquatic through literary, historical, cultural, philosophical, artistic, and ecological lenses. We also invite new approaches to blue aesthetics that engage with ecological futures and critically address and challenge colonial legacies, capitalist greed, extractivist practices, hierarchical structures, and terracentric logics.
Topics may include, but are not limited to:
· Transforming planetary waterscapes
· Swimming and embodied aquatic practices
· Climate change, rising seas, and coastal futures
· Multispecies entanglements in water
· Anthropocene oceans
· Postcolonial seas
· Futures of coastal environments
· Glacial melt, atmospheric currents, and extreme hydrological events
· Narratives of migration, mobility, and displacement across water
· Indigenous epistemologies and ontologies
· Narratives of loss across geological and metaphorical flows
· Tidalectics and the politics of aquatic relationality
· Fluid world-making practices in contemporary art projects
· Creativity and agency of water-dwelling beings
· Blue economies, extractivism, and environmental justice
· Deep-sea imagery and its cultural circulation
· Blue ethics: envisioning relational and multispecies responsibilities
We also welcome proposals for visual art exhibitions at the conference venue. The organizers reserve the right to select the applications.
Format: The conference will be in-person only. There will be no virtual sessions.
Abstract/Bio Statement Submissions: The official language of the conference is English. Interested scholars are kindly asked to submit abstracts between 200-350 words for 20-minute presentations, including 3-5 key words and a short bio note (70-100 words) as a single Microsoft Word file (no PDF please) to the conference email address. Please include your full name, institutional affiliation (including country information), abstract title, and email address (not included in the max. 350-word text limit) at the top of the abstract file.
Please send proposals to the conference e-mail address: cappadocia.ehconference2026@gmail.com
Important dates:
Deadline for abstract and short bio submission: Wednesday, January 31, 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT +3).
Peer-review accept/reject decision notification: Saturday, February 28, 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT +3).
Draft program announcement: Friday, March 20, 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT +3).
Final program announcement: Monday, April 6, 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT +3).
Conference Registration Fees: The conference fee includes the conference pack, lunch at the university cafeteria, and snacks and refreshments served during coffee breaks (20 thru 23 May). Registration fees can only be paid by credit card via the secure payment system to be accessed at http://ehconference.kapadokya.edu.tr/registration/
PARTICIPANTS WITH PAPER PRESENTATION
Early Registration (by Monday, March 16, 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT +3))
Faculty Member (Turkish University Affiliation): 4.000 TL
Faculty Member (Foreign University Affiliation): 300 EUR
Graduate Student (Turkish University Affiliation)*: 2.000 TL
Graduate Student (Foreign University Affiliation)*: 150 EUR
Late Registration (between Monday, April 6, 2026 and Saturday, April 20, 2026 (GMT +3))
Faculty Member (Turkish University Affiliation): 4.500 TL
Faculty Member (Foreign University Affiliation): 350 EUR
Graduate Student (Turkish University Affiliation)*: 2.500 TL
Graduate Student (Foreign University Affiliation)*: 200 EUR
NON-SPEAKING PARTICIPANTS (max. 30 places; registration on a “first come, first served” basis)
Early Registration (by Monday, March 16, 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT +3))
Faculty Member (Turkish University Affiliation): 1.500 TL
Faculty Member (Foreign University Affiliation): 100 EUR
Graduate Student (Turkish University Affiliation)*: 750 TL
Graduate Student (Foreign University Affiliation)*: 50 EUR
Late Registration (between Monday, April 6, 2026 and Saturday, April 20, 2026 (GMT +3))
Faculty Member (Turkish University Affiliation): 2.000 TL
Faculty Member (Foreign University Affiliation): 150 EUR
Graduate Student (Turkish University Affiliation)*: 1.000 TL
Graduate Student (Foreign University Affiliation)*: 75 EUR
* Scanned copy of current student ID card is required at the time of registration and should be sent to the conference email address together with the registration form as a separate document.
Peer Review Process: All abstracts will be double-blind peer reviewed by two reviewers.
Publication Prospects: All accepted abstracts will be electronically published as a Conference Abstracts book and maintained on the conference website.
A separate call for submissions will also be issued soon after the conference to invite full text articles to be selected through double-blind peer review for an edited collection of essays to be published by Cappadocia University Press Environmental Humanities Series.
Conference Location: The conference will take place at Mustafapaşa Campus, Cappadocia University, Nevşehir, Turkey. In addition to being the central campus of Cappadocia University, Mustafapaşa (former Sinasos) is the winner of the “Best Tourism Village” title awarded by The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in December 2021. For further details, please visit https://mustafapasakapadokya.org/en/
Travel: Mustafapaşa Campus is conveniently accessed through two airports, Kayseri Airport and Nevşehir Kapadokya Airport, both of which are within 1-hour travelling distance (by taxi or shuttle service).
Bus service to Ürgüp and Nevşehir central bus stations is also available from all major cities in Turkey.
Accommodation: A list of the recommended accommodation options (hotels that Cappadocia University works with for similar events) will be announced by March 1, 2026, 11:59 pm (GMT +3).
Meals: Lunch will be served at university canteen on May 20 thru 23 and will be included in the conference fee.
Cappadocia Excursion (Optional): Subject to advance registration and extra payment (deadline and cost to be announced), one-day sightseeing excursion to the attractions in the vicinity of Mustafapaşa Campus will be organized as part of the conference social program.
For details of the conference, please follow the updates at the conference official website: https://ehconference.kapadokya.edu.tr
For information about Environmental Humanities Center, please visit the Center’s website: https://ehc.kapadokya.edu.tr
For information about Ecocene: Cappadocia Journal of Environmental Humanities, please visit the journal website: https://ecocene.kapadokya.edu.tr
For information about Cappadocia University, please visit the university’s official website: https://kapadokya.edu.tr/en/
Click here to downlod the CfP as a PDF file.
We look forward to welcoming you to our conference in May 2026!
Serpil Oppermann & Sinan Akıllı
On behalf of the Organizing Committee